The gluttonous little boy is four and a half years old, and even the wealthy family kneels down and

In the early morning, only a faint white light shone through the curtains in the hotel room.

Qiu An was fast asleep, half her face buried in the pillow, breathing evenly, her brows relaxed, having a dream that was neither too deep nor too shallow.

Suddenly, a mountain loomed down.

No, to be precise, a small, warm, milky-smelling body landed straight on his waist from mid-air.

Qiu An groaned, and before he even opened his eyes, he felt two little feet kicking against his back.

"An'an! Wake up! Time for breakfast! We have shrimp dumplings today!"

Xiao Jin rode on his back, looking as energetic as if she hadn't stayed up all night.

She bent down, brought her face close to Qiu An's ear, and said loudly, "Get up! The shrimp dumplings won't taste good if they get cold!"

Qiu An struggled to open one eye, his face filled with despair.

He turned his head and saw Xiao Jin's bright and cheerful face hovering less than ten centimeters away from him, her eyes shining like live light bulbs.

He took a deep breath, buried his face back in the pillow, and mumbled, "...Get down."

"An'an is such a lazybones!" Xiao Jin not only refused to go down, but also reached out to pry open his eyelids.

Qiu An felt like her eyelids were being pried open by that little hand.

He resignedly rolled over and gently lifted Xiao Jin off him. Xiao Jin rolled half a circle on the bed like a round dumpling, then sat up on her own, looking at him expectantly.

Qiu An reached for her phone on the bedside table, glanced at it, and said in a weary, soulless voice, "It's only eight o'clock."

"What's wrong with eight o'clock? Xiao Jin was hungry at seven!" Xiao Jin jumped off the bed, ran to the dining table, and then turned back to shout at him, "An An, come quick, I'm going to eat your portion!"

Yun Ziang was preparing breakfast at the dining table.

He laid out several baskets of shrimp dumplings, porridge, and several dishes of side dishes, and without turning his head, he said upon hearing the noise:

"Let me tell you, my great-aunt's biological clock is more accurate than an alarm clock. She gets up at seven o'clock, brushes her teeth and washes her face by herself, and then comes to wake me up, saying, 'Grand-nephew, it's dawn, time to eat.'"

He chuckled. "At that moment, I felt like I was raising a talking chick."

Qiu An reluctantly sat up in bed, his hair a little messy from sleeping, with a few strands hanging over his forehead. He leaned against the headboard, his face saying, "I don't want to talk, and I don't want to eat."

Xiao Jin was already sitting in the chair, holding a shrimp dumpling in her hand. She took a big bite, her cheeks bulging out.

Yun Ziang sat next to her, combing her hair with a small comb.

Xiao Jin's hair was too wild last night, with clumps here and there, like she had just been in a fight.

Yun Ziang's fingers deftly moved through her hair, quickly tying it into a neat bun that stood obediently at the back of her head.

After watching for a while, Qiu An couldn't help but complain, "Is that all you can do?"

"So what?" Yunzi asked without looking up, as she was fastening a small clip to her bun. "You only need to master one style. Let me tell you, my buns looked terrible at first, all loose and limp. But after working on them day and night, they're now works of art."

Xiao Jin puffed out her cheeks and nodded in agreement, "Yes! Xiao Jin's braids are the prettiest!"

Yun Ziang pinned the last strawberry hair clip to her hair and clapped his hands in satisfaction: "Alright, the adorable little Jin is ready."

Qiu An glanced at Xiao Jin, then looked at Yun Ziang: "Her cuteness is her business, it has nothing to do with your hairstyle."

"You're just jealous." Yun Zi'ang scoffed at him, then turned and called out, "Come and eat breakfast. Xiao Jin, get your brother An'an a chicken leg."

Xiao Jin immediately grabbed a braised chicken leg from the plate, held it high, and waved it towards Qiu An: "Brother An'an, there's a chicken leg! If you don't get up, Xiao Jin will eat it!"

Qiu An looked at the shiny chicken leg, then at Xiao Jin's "I really will eat it" expression, and finally threw off the covers and got out of bed.

After quickly washing up, he sat down at the dining table, lazily took the chicken leg Xiao Jin handed him, and then casually helped Xiao Jin hold onto the small steamed bun she was about to drop.

Yun Zi'ang was still rambling about what happened last night: "You know, who exactly are those people from Kong Zheng? I figured it out last night. One phone call, and within half an hour, more than a dozen Taoist priests arrived, and they were all well-trained. This isn't something an ordinary charlatan could do."

Qiu An took a sip of porridge and said slowly, "In the beginning, it was an organization of those old men, which was originally formed spontaneously by the people. In the early years, there were many supernatural events in various places, and they shared information and helped resolve the issues."

"Later, things gradually became more organized, we took on apprentices, and eventually it became what it is now. There aren't many people, but they're everywhere. They're more useful than you at handling these kinds of things."

"Then what's going on between you and Kong Ji? He's been pursuing you for six years, that's too much," Yun Ziang asked.

Qiu An paused, his expression becoming somewhat subtle: "Back then, I had just left the mountain and knew nothing, so I caused some trouble. That old man bumped into me and insisted that I was a scourge of the world. He chased me for six years."

At that time, Kong Ji was about the same age as Yun Zi'ang.

Over the years, he must have grown into an old man by now.

Xiao Jin was so engrossed in listening that she forgot to eat her chicken leg.

Seeing that she was still staring at him, Qiu An reached out and tapped her head: "So don't get too close to those people with the surname Kong. Understand?"

Xiao Jin didn't comment, only said "Oh," and then buried her head in her chicken leg again.

Yun Ziang was about to ask another question when his phone suddenly rang. He glanced at the caller ID, answered, and his voice immediately became obedient and timid: "Auntie? No, no, I didn't take Xiao Jin to any dangerous places, just out for a walk... Ah? Enrollment? What enrollment?"

He grew increasingly surprised as he listened, finally exclaiming, "Kindergarten? Xiaojin is going to kindergarten?"

Yun Mingyue on the other end of the phone said, "Yes, the spot for the junior class at Yiling International Kindergarten has been secured. Bring the child back after you've had your day off, don't let it interfere with your business."

Yun Ziang hung up the phone and stared blankly at Xiao Jin.

Xiao Jin was eating with her mouth glistening with oil when she saw Yun Ziang looking at her and smiled at him.

Yun Zi'ang was suddenly overcome with sorrow: "Little aunt, you're going to kindergarten. There won't be anyone to play with your grand-nephew anymore."

He slumped over the table, as if life had stripped him of his backbone.

Qiu An scoffed, "You're in your twenties, and you're still playing with four-year-olds all day long. Aren't you ashamed?"

Yun Ziang raised his head, speaking with a straight face: "How is it shameful? Being with Xiao Jin right now is my most important task."

After he finished speaking, he looked at Xiao Jin again, "Little Miss, are you really going to school?"

Xiao Jin nodded vigorously: "I want to go! My little niece said the kindergarten has delicious food and little cakes!"

Yun Zi'ang was even more heartbroken: "I knew it, you only went because of the food."

Qiu An said, "Alright, I'm going back to Beijing anyway. I haven't settled the score with you for tricking me into coming on vacation. I've put it in my account, so remember to pay me back this time."

"Pack your things and hurry back."

The three moved very quickly.

Xiao Jin went back to her room and packed her little cloth bag and fox-shaped bag. Yun Ziang filled the car with gas, and Qiu An was responsible for putting Xiao Jin into the child seat.

We set off before noon, heading towards Beijing.

Xiao Jin fell asleep shortly after getting on the bus, clutching her fox-shaped bag in her arms, one of the ears on the bag soaked with drool.

Yun Ziang glanced at her in the rearview mirror and whispered, "Will she stop clinging to me once she starts kindergarten?"

Qiu An leaned against the car window, seemingly stumped by the question.

After a few seconds, he said, "Maybe she'll make a lot of new friends. But Xiao Jin is the kind of person who, once she's chosen someone, she's considered them hers."

He stopped talking and just turned his head to look out the window.

Sunlight streamed down from behind the clouds, falling on the speeding car and coating it with a thin layer of gold.

It was already afternoon when we arrived in Beijing.

After dropping Qiu An off at home, the two returned to the Yun family villa. As soon as the car stopped, Xiao Jin unbuckled her seatbelt, twisted out of Yun Ziang's arms, and ran home.

She ran while shouting, "Zhengbang! Uncle Chen! Xiaojin is back!"

In the living room, Yun Zhengbang was sitting on the sofa drinking tea, with a woman sitting next to him.

The woman was in her early fifties, wearing a misty blue modified cheongsam, her hair neatly tied up, and a pair of delicate pearl earrings adorning her ears. She had gentle features, and when she smiled, there were very faint lines at the corners of her eyes.

She turned around at the sound and saw a round little dumpling run in through the door, its eyes sparkling and its voice clear like a bird.

Xiao Jin ran to the center of the living room and suddenly stopped, because she saw that unfamiliar woman who was so beautiful she looked like she had stepped out of a painting.

She tilted her head back, her mouth slightly open, and stood there for two seconds.

The woman had already stood up, walked to her, and slowly squatted down.

She was much taller than Xiao Jin, but she kept a very low profile, as if afraid of frightening her.

She smiled gently, her voice soft and light: "You must be Xiao Jin? I'm Jiang Shulan. It's nice to meet you."

Xiao Jin blinked, then blinked again, and blurted out, "You're my great-nephew's mother!"

Jiang Shulan was slightly taken aback, then smiled and said, "Yes. I am Yun Ziang's mother."

She is Yun Mingyuan's wife.

Xiao Jin stared intently at her, then suddenly said, "You're as beautiful as a flower."

Jiang Shulan was taken aback, then smiled, her smile softening the lines around her eyes.

She reached out and tucked a stray strand of hair behind Xiao Jin's ear: "You're as cute as a little cake."

Yun Ziang parked his car and came in. When he saw Jiang Shulan, he was taken aback at first, then strode over to her: "Mom! When did you get back? Why didn't you say anything?"

He opened his arms, and Jiang Shulan stood up and gave him a very light hug.

"I arrived last night. It was too late, so I didn't want to disturb you." Jiang Shulan patted his back, then looked at Xiao Jin. "I've never seen such a lovable child."

Yun Zi'ang proudly raised his chin: "Of course. Don't you know whose little aunt she is?"

Jiang Shulan smiled, then looked towards the door again: "Where's Qiu An?"

"He said he had something to do and left first." Yun Ziang didn't explain further.

Jiang Shulan nodded, turned around and took out several large paper bags from beside the sofa, her eyes filled with anticipation:

"When I saw your photo, I thought you were very cute, so when I saw some pretty dresses outside, I thought of bringing them back for Xiaojin."

"I wonder if Xiao Jin likes it?"

Xiao Jin's eyes lit up immediately: "A little dress? For Xiao Jin?"

"Yes, they're all for you." Jiang Shulan bent down and handed one of the paper bags to Xiao Jin.

Xiao Jin looked down and saw neatly folded lace, tulle, floral patterns, and light blue, as if it contained an entire spring.

She hugged the paper bag tightly, smiling so broadly her eyes disappeared: "Thank you, Jiang Huahua!"

Yun Zi'ang burst out laughing beside her: "Jiang Huahua? Mom, you have a new name now."

Jiang Shulan wasn't annoyed; she simply gently brushed Xiao Jin's nose: "Shall we go upstairs and try?"

"Okay!!" Xiao Jin excitedly followed Jiang Shulan upstairs.

Yun Zhengbang sat to the side, smiling as he watched their backs as they walked away. He suddenly realized that his house hadn't been this lively in a long time.

He thought, Xiao Jin is just like a little sun; wherever she goes, the place is bright and cheerful.

In the bedroom on the second floor, Jiang Shulan laid out all the paper bags on the bed.

The skirts unfolded one by one, some with puff sleeves in a courtly style, some with small floral prints in a pastoral style, and several sets of suits paired with little leather shoes and headbands.

Xiao Jin's eyes were dazzled by the sights. She stretched out her little hands, touching this one and then that one.

Jiang Shulan sat on the edge of the bed, picking up one item after another and comparing them to her body, saying, "This one makes your skin look whiter, this one suits your eyes well, this one will fly up when you twirl..."

Xiao Jin was so intrigued by her words that she quickly started spinning around on the floor.

"Jiang Huahua, this one! Xiao Jin wants to wear this one!" Xiao Jin picked up a light blue gauze dress, her eyes sparkling.

"Okay, let's try it." Jiang Shulan helped her straighten her skirt, then found the matching leather shoes and knelt down to change her shoes.

Xiao Jin obediently lifted her foot, then couldn't help but ask, "Jiang Huahua, can you braid Xiao Jin's hair too?"

"Yes, I will." Jiang Shulan smiled, taking a thin hair tie off her wrist. "After you change your clothes, I'll braid your hair into a little braid."

Xiao Jin gave a heavy "hmm".

Meanwhile, Yun Mingyue finalized the enrollment arrangements and sent a message to Yun Zhengbang:

I've already sent Xiaojin's application materials. We'll take her entrance photo tomorrow, and she'll register the day after. Including Xiaojin, there are exactly seven children in the Whale Class.

Yun Mingyue sat in the car, placed the document bag on the passenger seat, glanced at the page of identity information one last time, paused for a second, and thought of the information she had seen earlier.

Xiao Jin was adopted into the Yun family, but how did she become an orphan? Her father doesn't seem to know either.

Who could bear to abandon such a lovely child?

Yun Mingyuan's mind raced with thoughts, but he didn't want to dwell on it. In any case, Xiao Jin was her family.

She put away her phone, started the car, and drove towards the Yun family's house.